Gunman escapes after shooting woman in Oakland robbery

Published 10:19 pm, Thursday, October 6, 2011

(10-06) 22:19 PDT OAKLAND -- A man shot and critically wounded a woman during a robbery in Oakland's Laurel District and then escaped Thursday after crashing his car near an Interstate 580 on-ramp, forcing the closure of all westbound lanes for several hours, authorities said.

The woman was walking on the 4000 block of MacArthur Boulevard near the Laurel Ace Hardware store and a Bank of America branch when she was confronted by a man who stole her purse and shot her at about 2 p.m., authorities said. She was taken to a hospital, where she was listed in critical condition. Her name was not released.

The robber jumped into a Lexus and sped away. He apparently tried to get onto westbound I-580 at 35th Avenue but crashed on the on-ramp and fled on foot, police said.

The California Highway Patrol blocked all westbound lanes of I-580 between High Street and 35th Avenue at about 2:45 p.m. as Oakland police searched the area with the help of dogs, without success.

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The Laurel District has seen a recent rash of robberies, according to area merchants and residents.

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